Oh no! Where's the JavaScript?Your Web browser does not have JavaScript enabled or does not support JavaScript. Please enable JavaScript on your Web browser to properly view this Web site, or upgrade to a Web browser that does support JavaScript; Firefox, Safari, Opera, Chrome or a version of Internet Explorer newer then version 6.

Having just gone through my first few lbs. of the first beans I bought after being bit by the roasting bug, I'm now extremely curious about what coffees you guys are enjoying. Maybe some suggestions for future purchase, if you feel like offering.
My first batch was 4lbs. of Ethiopian varieties, Harrar Longberry, Sidamo, Limu, and Yirgacheffe, all purchased from a company in Alaska. Just found the site online and went for it.
All of these were very good, and I've been amazed at the difference in super fresh coffee.
I've just received 3lbs. of different types from SM's and looking forward to trying them. The first was a Guatemalan Finca La Florentina 100% Bourbon, and it was very different than the winey Etiopian's. I may just like winey coffee. We'll press on and see.
What's turning your roaster drum at the moment?
Share the good word.

The SM Double 8-pack sampler is a good idea, 1lb of 8 green coffee beans especially picked for you. The regular 8-pack with 1/2 lb of 8 coffees is also good if you want to keep expensices down or can only roast small volumes. They will mix you an 8-pack from all the coffee growing regions of the world. and you can compare your taste experiences to Tom's professional tasting notes or from the tasting notes here. (depending on your water, elevation, power, roasting style, brewing style, grinding style, etc your tasting may vary)

Right now I'm drinking a beautiful deep-flavored FTO Rwanda Rushashi from BurmanCoffee. It's very similar to a good Kenyan. Powerful. In fact, all four of the FT coffees I have now from Burman's are very good, 2 cafs and 2 decafs.

Overall I like all kinds of coffee, but my favorites are definitely the wild and unpredictable East Africans.

I like MarkBart's methodology, too. Sample packs are a great way to learn about single-origin beans AND check out the vendor as well. What has surprised me is how few stinkers I've received. So to me it tastes like the green bean industry is doing a terrific job.

... or it could be that coffee beans are tough little critters, able to put up with a lot of abuse and still taste great!

We started with the 8 lb. sampler from SweetMarias also. It was a good way to try various coffees.

So far, we like the Sumatras the best. We've found that if the review uses terms like "bright" or "citrus", we don't like those so well. But we continue to explore and experiment, but keep enough Sumatra on-hand for our morning cup.

-bill

ps: we've been pleased with SweetMaria's flat-rate USPS service to Alabama.

This morning's coffee will be Colonia Challamayo, a AA Superior Grade Bolivian from <strong>www.Inval...m at $3.37 a pound. I found this distributor on Ebay and did a leap of faith, and it worked, I'm on my second 66# bag.
The description said chocolate, sweet, almonds, and with a cupping score of 83 of 100, very similar to SM's offerings, I couldn't stop from jumping on this one. This is the daily coffee for the wife and myself.
Edited by MarkBart on 06/19/2008 4:09 AM

A return to Coffee Bean Direct's Sumatra Mandheling, Full City+. I tried it a little darker this time, but don't care for it as well as when it's about City+ at the first snap of 2C. This time I let 2nd roll for about 15 seconds before dumping. It lost the chocolate and leather taste and seems a little flat... still better than what's offered at the grocer!

WOW..that's great stuff. Keep it coming! I especially appreciated bvwelch's comments about finding a particular description used in describing taste, as something he personally didn't prefer. Much like what I said earlier as finding a "winey" coffee being to my taste. Hearing these comments, even if very personal and not meant to be a judgement call on the quality of the coffee, helps one evaluate those terms somewhat.
I know that those of you more refined in your experience may find that rather simple. That's exactly what I find most helpful. Thank you!

I've found that I'm a sucker for the Sugar Browning aromas, like "Chocolaty" (vanilla, dark chocolate and buttery) and "Carmelly" (maple syrup, honey, toasted almonds or hazlenut). We had been drinking a Guatamala Palhu Huehuetenango from www.coffeebeancor... and it has those flavors in droves, like hershey's chocolate syrup and sweet too! So the switch back to Sumatra this week was a small letdown.

You like the winey coffees? If you drum roast, you may prefer an air roast method as they tend to give a nice bright snap to the roasts while the drum tends to mute them just a little.

DaveG wrote:
Would I be correct in saying I have an air roast machine since I have a Cafe Gene?

Yes, sort of ...

The Gene Cafe is a hybrid borrowing from both drum and air roasters. It does use forced hot air, but is not a fluid-bed roaster because the the air is not use for bean agitation; it uses the off-axis rotation of the drum for agitation of the beans.

I found flavor development of the Gene Cafe roasts to have qualities of both the fluid-bed roasters (brightness) and the drum roaster (deeper tones), but leaned toward the air roasters.

I can still remember the cinnamon roast of the 2006 Ethiopia Organic Idido Misty Valley DP from Sweet Maria's ... what a fantastic cup of coffee!

Going into my first order from Sweet Maria's. I got a nice surprise when I roasted my first batch of Panama Carmen Estate 1800+ Meters.
I'll leave the formal description to the SM website, but it's delicious. I even went back to the vacuum carafe 3-4 hrs after the pot was made, and reheated it was still excellent. Definately the pick of the three lb. litter.

Roasted my last pound of the Panama Typica from www.theroasterie.com 2 nights ago. I really, really like this coffee. With only two days rest, a bright snap (with a vague flavor at the moment) followed by a very mellow carmel. It will taste even better tomorrow. My multimeter thermocouple decided to go belly up while roasting, so I just listened and smelled into a nice City roast. It isn't overroasted this time!

Sipping a Cafe Yolanda, a national jury winner from Bolivia via Invalsa:

http://www.invalsa.com/index.php?cPath=43_83_94

We had a Boliviathon down near Chicago and I roasted up 8 Bolivians and one Philippino liberica. The Bolivians were superb and the liberica was in a word, horrid. Ever drink roasted barley mixed with asphalt?

This morning's cup was prepped in a Yama 8-cup, Corning rod (bit smaller than a Cory rod). Fragrance has hints of cedar and black pepper. The cup is extremely balanced, medium body, moves to the sweet side (as do many quality Bolivians), caramel, faint creamy feel, light cocoas, hint of orange, great acidity for what is presented. Fills the mouth.